Caught
by MarloweWilde
Summary: Charlie and Mike struggle to keep their blossoming relationship a secret from everyone, including their house-mates. But eventually, work gets in the way and of all the ways Mike and Charlie had planned on revealing their secret, they definitely didn't imagine one so dangerous. Rated T for future chapters (violence and strong language)
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Hi there. First off, I don't own Graceland and have nothing to do with it, obviously. So I know this is quite short but its really just an introduction, I actually have an idea in mind for a little bit of a series which I'm really nervous about ('cause I have never ever done that before) but I really want to give it a go. Yeah, so the rating is more in reference to later chapters if I work up the nerve to give it a try :L The title is also more about the overall idea, the cost of leading a double life and the sacrifices they have to make to succeed. But I SUCK at titles so sorry it's lame. Anyway, I'll shut up now. Enjoy. X **

Chapter 1

Mike and Charlie walked hand in hand along the beach. Charlie rested her head on Mike's shoulder as he buried a kiss in her hair. He had his teal shirt unbuttoned, exposing a grey vest and Charlie had his jacket draped over her shoulders. It was about five in the morning and the sun was just rising. Charlie still felt shivery so she took Mike's hand and moved to wrap his arm around her. She nestled herself closer into his body, enjoying the new found warmth. She leaned up and lightly pressed a kiss under Mike's jaw.

They lived for these moments, when they didn't have to hide who they were and how they felt about one another. As if their job didn't require enough deception, now they also had to lie once they got home. For a while Graceland had been a haven, a sanctuary where nothing had to be kept hidden, all pretences were left outside. But now, for the sake of their relationship, they had to conceal it. They both knew emotional attachments were a terrible idea in this line of work and they knew that their house-mates would never approve but it was so hard to care when they made each other so happy. Once or twice they'd even tried to break up only to get into a stupid fight and end up having great make-up sex.

These morning walks were fairly regular. Charlie would be out at a bar somewhere, hunting a new CI or something. Mike would sneak away to meet her on the way home and they would share an hour just walking, laughing and joking or sometimes just enjoying the easy silence. Actually inventing reasons to be alone together wasn't that hard. Charlie would say she needed Mike to follow her to shady bars for protection and then they would go for dinner or catch a movie instead. The trouble was they were just so busy with real cases, there was hardly ever time to squeeze in fake ones. But they still shared some stolen moments alone. A quick kiss on the beach while the others sat around the fire, holding hands under the dinner table, their morning "work-outs."

They walked along the beach for a while longer just watching the sun rise and drifting in and out of conversation.

"So what do you have going on today?" Mike asked, squeezing Charlie's shoulder, pulling her even closer.

"Ugh, I gotta go collect evidence from that den downtown and then I have to try and track down a witness who checked himself out of rehab."

"And is there time to squeeze a lunch in between?"

"Mike, I'm going to be disguised as a junkie, you're not gonna want to be anywhere near me."

"Aww, that's not true," Mike joked, wrapping both arms around Charlie and kissing her all over her face.

"Ew, get off! God, you're such a slobbery puppy," Charlie winced as he pushed him away, "You know, I'm still not sure if I even like you before noon."

"You sure liked me yesterday morning." Mike gave a sleazy wink and raised his eyebrows suggestively. Charlie stopped walking to stare him down.

"Don't ever do that again," she added flatly. Mike's expression turned pouting at her reprimand. Charlie grinned, "Not so cocky, huh?" Charlie lightly punched Mike's shoulder and started walking again. He paused for a moment before running to catch up. He caught her by the hand and the laughed carelessly as he pulled her in for a kiss.

They continued along the shore and Mike groaned as their house came into view, disappointed their walk was coming to an end.

"Cheer up, babe," Charlie said softly, caressing Mike's cheek, "You guys did great the other day with the Russians, Briggs should go easy on you today, right?" Mike huffed.

"Oh Briggs wont be coming anywhere near me today. He graciously left all the paperwork to me, gentleman that he is." Charlie threw her head back laughing but sympathetically kissed him on the cheek.

"Come on, it cant be_ that _bad." Mike stopped to stare at Charlie defiantly.

"Three million dollars worth of coke, five crates of illegally imported AK47s and the shooting of two major league players," he recapped, "Charlie I've got a forest stacked on my desk."

"Imports? Isn't that Jakes' problem?" Mike continued to stare at her incredulously. (Fear knotted in his stomach as he recalled Jakes' threats when he'd heard about the bust. Jakes didn't have to twist Mike's arm too much before he conceded to handle the paperwork. Actually, one threat to "knock him into next week" was all it took.)

"How come he's never that mean to any of you?" Mike whimpered.

"Well," Charlie sighed, "It's probably because he knows Briggs and Johnny could take him, he thinks Paige is hot and, well... he actually likes me." she teased.

"Oh, thank you, that's really nice," Mike retorted with a sarcastic smile, "I mean, who wouldn't like you, you're just so kind and sympathetic."

"Shut up." Charlie retorted before forcing Mike to do just that by kissing him passionately, letting a hand rest on the nape of his neck as his arms enveloped her.

Mike and Charlie were so caught up in their embrace the whole world seemed to slip away. They didn't notice the sun finally settle high in the sky. They didn't notice Mike's canine friend come to sit obediently by his side, ready for their run and they didn't notice the camera, pointing out of the car window as it snapped several pictures of them before quickly driving away.

**A/N: Ooooh, intrigue :P Yeah, short, as I said but I hope you guys like it so far (who doesn't like a lil' fluff, right?) and if you are enjoying it maybe I'll keep going. But my general idea is really vague so any suggestions or comments would be great. X**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Hi again. So this chapter is really just setting up the story. It's necessary but it's obviously not one I was super excited to write. I mainly just wanted to set up the background and maybe try and develop the house dynamic a teeny tiny bit. I tried to make it as clear as possible. :S So, I decided to just put it up quickly so I don't forget any of the stuff I'm excited about... I don't quite know why I felt you needed to know that. I have nothing to do with "Graceland" or USA and I am in no way profiting from this fic.**

**Enjoy X**

Chapter 2

Charlie was right, Mike had done a great job on his last mission. He had been undercover with one of California's most powerful Russian crime families, the Novikov, for a few weeks. Mike had begged to be assigned a case of his own, tired of shadowing the others so Briggs told him to try and get as close to the top as he could. Mike, ever the over-achiever was determined to impress Briggs and, truthfully, the rest of his house-mates as well. He'd finally learned to pretty much disobey every rule in the FBI manual and was willing to take some risks to get attention.

He had introduced himself as a mid-level east coast drug dealer who recently had to relocate to California after he pissed off the head of a rival family over there. In one lie Mike had explained why no one had ever seen him around before, he'd gained their trust in a "my enemy's enemy" kind of a way and he'd accounted for the cheap product he was offering. He'd also managed to get close to the top of the operation with his high quality product (generously donated by Jakes and all it had cost Mike was a mere three turns of the chore wheel) While Mike was quite proud of himself, to say that the others were less than impressed was an understatement.

"What, you want a medal?" was Briggs somewhat discouraging response, "Johnny was making up crap ten times better than that last night at the bar and he just wanted to get laid."

"Hey, give him a break, Briggs," Johnny interjected, slinging an arm around Mike, "some people are naturally exceptional, like me," he flashed a cheesy smile, "and others just need to coast sometimes. Don't feel bad about your inadequacies, Mike. And hey, man, don't get upset if you never reach my level of perfection." He thumped Mike right between the shoulder blades before giving him a wink and moving on, laughing. Mike winced as he tried to figure out whether or not Johnny was serious about the first part before he continued."That story _was_ pretty weak, though."

"You two are assholes," Paige groaned.

"Thanks, Paige," Mike's blue eyes lit up a little, his mood lightening at the sight of one of his friends coming to his aid, "You don't think my story sucks, right?" Paige's face dropped and she quickly exited the room, pretending her cell phone was ringing. Great. Mike hung his head only to catch sight of a small hand moving to lace with his.

"It's not lame, its vague." Charlie argued.

"It's average." Briggs challenged.

"It's smart. It's generic, it's hard to trace and it could apply to about a half a million guys. Mike could be anybody. I mean, isn't that what you're always telling him to do, be vague? He obviously chose something _that_ average on purpose, right, Mike?" Charlie's eyes widened a little when Mike hesitated. He was so busy grinning as he watched her defend him that he missed his cue to confirm it.

"Oh, yeah. Yes. God, I mean obviously I did it on purpose," Mike was met with three pairs of suspicious eyes and so he went on the defensive, "You know, I am sick of you guys thinking I'm an idiot an-"

"Yeah," the whole room turned in stunned silence as Jakes uttered more than a grunt for the first time that morning... before he restored normality, "Mikey here got a hefty 1700 on his practicals after all, didn't you, Levi?" he smiled wickedly, his words dripping with sarcasm. Briggs and Johnny coiled up laughing and even Charlie had to bite her lip to keep from giggling.

"Thanks. Thank you. The support is wonderful." Mike was trying to save face but he couldn't help but feel really dejected. At that moment he felt a soft nudge in his ribs and looked up to see Charlie, by his side, giving him a reassuring wink as her full lips pulled up in a warm smile. It was all Mike could do not to kiss her there and then.

The next morning Mike awoke alone. Not getting to spend the night with Charlie would have turned his mood sour on its own but he was still pissed about the teasing he'd received yesterday. He got out of bed, determined to impress the Russians and the house-mates. He quickly threw on his work-out clothes and set off on his usual route but not before stopping into Charlie's room to see was she home. He breathed a sigh of relief when he spotted the top of her head poking out over the duvet. He hated when she stayed out all night but he'd learned not to question her about it or ask her to be more careful. That was the only real fight they'd ever had. Even though it was hard, they had to trust one another not to do anything too stupid, not to put themselves in unnecessary danger. At the same time, though, they had to accept that this job, life at Graceland _was _dangerous and they couldn't let their worry stop them from carrying it out properly.

Mike soundlessly made his way over to Charlie's bed and paused for a minute to watch her sleep before rearranging her covers where she'd kicked them off. He leaned in to press a kiss to her forehead.

"What did I say about before noon?" came Charlie's sleepy voice. She didn't even bother to open her eyes.

"Right, sorry." Mike whispered as he made for the door, feeling a little rebuffed.

"Mike, I'm kidding, get back here," Charlie snapped. She would have been more amused by his obedience if he hadn't woken her at 6 a.m. Her sense of humour wouldn't kick in for another four hours. Mike smiled in relief as he took Charlie's now outstretched hand and allowed himself to be pulled down on the bed beside her. He heard her mumble the word "idiot" as she nestled into him.

"You're crazy getting up this early," she whimpered, but when he didn't react she began to feel uneasy, "What's the matter, Mike?"

"I have to go figure out what to do next with the Russians," Mike sighed as he pulled her closer, "I've got to impress them." he closed his eyes wearily as Charlie turned to look at him.

"Mike look at me," she took his face in her hands, sitting up, "You don't have anything to prove, okay? You _are _smart and you're enthusiastic and you're good at your job. None of us caught on as quick as you," Mike fixed her with a sceptical stare, his eyes narrowing. "What, you don't believe me?" there was an edge of irritation in her voice but she she sighed and continued, "Okay, answer me this: why would everyone be so threatened by you if you weren't doing a good job, huh? Why would they give you such a hard time? You don't think Briggs knows you're only gonna work harder the more he underestimates you? It's because they know you're strong and they know you're a hard worker. Give yourself a break, baby" Mike chewed on that for a minute, his brow furrowed and his lip pouting in thought.

"Yeah but, Charlie, what if you're wrong?" Mike's eyes were filled with uncertainty and his bottom lip was still jutting out. Charlie felt her heart break a little. She inwardly vowed to kill the others once she was fully awake and at her full strength.

"Aww, puppy," she pressed a kiss to his forehead, "If I'm wrong then screw them. I guess you cant please everyone, right? And besides, the only opinion you should care about is mine." she teased, grinning playfully. Mike returned her smile, his eyes lightening and his mood lifting considerably. He kissed Charlie a final time and felt himself walking a little taller now that he knew at least _she_ had confidence in him. Maybe her opinion _was_ the only one that mattered to him. He blushed as this thought crossed his mind and thought the better of saying it out loud. Charlie had a lot of pillows and cushions that could be used as projectiles and he knew it was far too early for "his mushy gushy bullshit" as she'd affectionately named his softer side.

Mike set out for his run with a decidedly different mindset. He was still out to impress but now it was Charlie and only Charlie's good opinion he sought. If she had faith in him he was going to show her it had not been misplaced.

Mike swore he would not let himself go home until he'd come up with a plan. He could handle the physical exertion but he was dying to get home to the beautiful girl who'd promised she be waiting for him in the empty house when he returned. Mike felt his pulse quicken so he shook his head and forced himself to focus on the task at hand.

Mike ran for miles, unable to create anything worthwhile. He had to try and think of something dangerous, something risky- something stupid. Mike was not good at trusting in "stupid." Mike wasn't Briggs. Mike couldn't just act off instinct like Briggs, at least not when the stakes were really high, like on his first night in Graceland with the other Russian crime family, the Vzakonye.

"Oh my God, Vzakonye." Mike stopped in his tracks as inspiration practically smacked him in the face. Technically, he was still in with the Vzakonye. Frankie something, that had been his cover. Well what if Frankie went to the Vzakonye with a tip off about his other Russian friends, the Novikov, he could tell them about that huge drop that was going to happen that night. Why? Maybe he wanted to atone for killing two of their men that night. (They didn't have to know it was Briggs that shot them.) So, if everything went to plan, the drop would be intercepted by the Vzakonye, the Vzakonye would get the hell out of there only to be stormed by the FBI the minute they made it home. Mike giggled to himself as the best part of his plan dawned on him: none of this could be traced back to Mike. Who'd tipped them off? Some guy called Frankie. Mike wouldn't even have to blow his cover.

Mike whipped his phone out of his pocket and dialled in a giddy frenzy.

"Charlie, it's Mike. Listen, remember that make-up job you did for me on my first case? Yeah, the scar on my forehead. Well, I need you to do it again. I'll be home in ten."

"You got a plan, Mikey?"

"Yup. It's risky, it's crazy, it's messy- I mean, it's got about a dozen moving pieces. It's confusing and it's going to be almost impossible to pull off."

"Sounds perfect."

Mike laughed as he hung up. He punched the air and practically floated home with a smile so big his cheeks hurt.

And, miraculously, everything had gone to plan. Thankfully, Briggs had only shot two insignificant henchmen that night so the Vzakonye didn't shoot Mike the second he walked back into Sorin's Autoshop. He offered the tip and sure enough, that night, the new Russians, the Novikov family, had all of their cargo jacked. Then an hour later the Vzakonye's efforts proved fruitless as they were stormed by Johnny and the SWAT team. The only hiccup had been the murder of two out of three of the Novikov brothers. The (formerly) three brothers headed the Novikov operations and were three of the biggest king pins on the west coast. Mike probably would have been more concerned if he hadn't been too bust basking in the glow of his newly garnered praise.

The next night at the bar Mike didn't pay for any of his drinks. Briggs was practically giddy, delighted that Mike was finally learning from his "infinite wisdom" as he put it. Johnny, well, Johnny was just pleased he'd had a chance to storm the crime den- his favourite past time. Jakes offered a gracious nod by way of praise before toasting to "Levi's triumph." (Mike sighed as he realised that nick-name was never going away) Mike blushed when Paige had given him a kiss on the cheek and he beamed whenever Charlie shot him a wink or quickly kissed him when no one was looking. She grinned proudly the whole night and Mike even heard her whisper "I told you assholes he could do it" when she thought he was out of earshot.

Mike took a triumphant gulp of his beer but felt it turn sour in his mouth as he caught sight of Charlie dragging Johnny up to dance. He wasn't jealous, simply frustrated that he couldn't wind his arms around her and have her press her gyrating hips against his. Later that night Mike pulled Charlie into a concealed corner to kiss her passionately.

"Lets just tell them," he pressed the plea to her lips as he paused to catch his breath, "They're going to have to find out sooner or later. And the sooner they find out the sooner we can stop all the secrecy." Charlie pulled away and shot Mike a quizzical stare, her eyes narrowed and her lips pursed. "... all the _relationship_ secrecy." he qualified with an exasperated roll of his eyes. Charlie giggled and pressed another kiss to his lips.

"Soon, okay?" Mike sighed and nodded as she wiped the smudged lipstick from his face and smoothed his hair down. He pressed a last kiss to her forehead before she slipped away. Mike stood there for a minute, still dizzy from their embrace, totally unaware of just how soon their secret would be revealed.

**A/N: So, as I said, I just wanted to set up the case Mike was working on (which I tried to make as clear as possible but if it's still really confusing let me know.) don't worry though, its not important really, I just wanted it to be established. Bit of a flashback there, I hope that was clear. So what I'm saying is, sorry if that was really messy and confusing but bare with me, the worst is over. Comments/ suggestions would still be really helpful, nothing is set in stone in my mind just yet. I really hoped you enjoyed it and, of course, thanks for reading. X**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: Hi there! Okay, this chapter has been driving me crazy for about two weeks now so I'm just going to post it so that it's done and it wont be annoying me any more. This is draft number seven thousand I think and I'm still not happy but I just want to get on to the next part so I give up. I've made my piece with the fact that it's crappy, you're just going to have to try to do the same! (Joke) It kind of sucks but bare with me. Of course, I don't own Graceland.**

**Enjoy. X**

Mike got up off the couch again, unable to sit still. He reached for his hand grip and started clenching his fist around it. His jaw was aching from having it tensed all night in agitation. He moved over to the window and tried his hardest not to look at his watch for the fiftieth time that night. Instead he kept his eyes focused on the shore. When he couldn't stand it any longer he fished his phone out of his pocket. No new messages.

"This is bullshit" he muttered to himself as he dialled her number yet again. It rang off and Mike threw it to the side in frustration. He rubbed his face and squinted to see his watch face. Three Fifteen. Charlie had turned her phone off four hours ago and Mike hadn't spoken to her since nine o'clock. He started pacing, inwardly arguing whether or not to go and look for her. He knew it was pointless, that he'd never find her but he was losing his mind sitting in the dark, waiting. He started to compile a list of places he could look for Charlie as he began hunting Briggs' car keys. Mike couldn't believe how he could be so pissed off and so worried about one person at the same time. If he saw Charlie walk through the door he didn't know whether he'd kill her or kiss her.

Mike rubbed his eyes, totally exhausted and genuinely thought he was hearing things when the sound of the front door opening reached him from the kitchen.

"Where the hell have you been?" Mike demanded as he stormed into the hall. He stopped in his tracks and began to blush once he got there.

"Whoa take it easy, Mikey " Johnny threw his hands up in surrender, "What's wrong with you?" Mike rolled his eyes.

"Is Charlie with you?"

"No, I was with that yoga instructor. You remember? Hot little blonde, you met he at the bar? She's kind of petite but curv-"

"Well did she tell you where she was going?" Mike persisted, ignoring Johnny's grin.

"No, why?" Johnny yawned.

"Her phone's off."

"So?"

"_So, _she should have told at least one of us where she would be, right?" Mike looked for Johnny to agree but he just stared back in confusion.

"Why are you so nervous, Mike? Charlie's a big girl, she's not in any trouble."

"Oh yeah, how do you know?"

"It's only three thirty. I think you should hold off on filing a missing persons report just 'cause she stayed in the club until closing,"Johnny laughed. Mike exhaled and nodded but he was far from satisfied, "Seriously, why are you so freaked? Are..." Johnny's tone turned playful, "Are you waiting up for her?" He began to giggle and Mike felt his cheeks redden, "You got a crush, Mikey?"

"Shut up, Johnny." Mike huffed. He tried to sound amused but fear knotted in the pit of his stomach. Charlie was going to kill him if Johnny found out. Of all the people they didn't want to know about their relationship, it was Johnny, "I don't have a crush. I'm just mad that she's always on my ass to check in and tell someone I'm okay and then she just..." Mike trailed off in mock indignation, praying that Johnny would buy it. Johnny stared at him for a minute. Mike felt a wave of relief when Johnny's expression turned from suspicious to judging. He really did believe Mike could be that childish.

"Whatever, dude. I'm going to bed." Mike heard Johnny moving around for a little while longer and then the house was quiet again.

Mike slumped into couch and let his head fall back as he closed his eyes, exhausted by his close call. He focused on regulating his breathing and eventually began to drift off. All of a sudden he felt a familiar pair of lips press lightly against his cheek.

"Hey," Charlie whispered when he twitched a little, waking up. Her hair tickled his face as she leaned over him from behind the couch. Mike opened his eyes and looked out the window. It was beginning to get brighter. He looked at his watch. Five thirty. Mike stared, puzzled for a second before he remembered why he'd fallen asleep on the couch in the first place, "Were you waiting up for me?" Charlie's tone was sweet and playful, oblivious to Mike's anger.

"Yeah, well it's kind of hard to sleep easy when your girlfriend takes off for hours and shuts her phone off."

"Whoa, what's gotten into you?" Charlie interrupted, taken aback by Mike's reaction. Mike stared at her, incredulously as he moved to stand in front of her.

"What do you mean, "what's gotten into me"? I was worried sick, Charlie. I was going crazy."  
"Yeah, I believe it." she retorted, still staring at Mike in confusion.

"Is that supposed to be funny?" Mike's face was screwed up in anger. His usually smiling blue eyes were tight and dark and his lips were pursed.

"Mike, I..." Charlie sighed. She was so shocked by Mike's outburst, she'd never seen him this angry at anybody, "I was just at a bar, it was nothing. I went to an after hours and then I had to take the long way home."

"But I didn't know that, Charlie." Mike almost whispered. Despite his anger he was still so relieved to hear her simple explanation, "You've never left in me in the dark like that before. You've always told me where you'd be or texted me to say you were okay." Mike was starting to feel a little foolish about his overreaction but his anger hadn't totally subsided.

"Nothing happened," Charlie pleaded.

"But anything could have happened." Mike's face turned fearful and Charlie felt guilt for the first time that night. Suddenly she could picture him, waiting by the door with those puppy eyes, willing her to walk in. She knew she should have been angry but she couldn't help but smile at Mike's worrying about her. She cupped his face and forced him to make eye contact. She wound her hand around the back of his neck and silently whispered words of apology to his lips as she kissed him. She trailed kisses down his jaw and rested on his neck before burying her head in the crook of his neck. Mike sighed and let his arms envelop her as he planted kisses in her hair.

"I was so worried," he confessed.

"Please don't get that worked up again." Charlie mumbled against his neck.

"Well don't forget to call me next time." Mike felt Charlie stiffen in his arms as he said the words. There was a moment of tense silence before Charlie pulled away to look at him through narrowed eyes.

"Are you my father, Mike?" Mike rolled his eyes as Charlie took another step away from him and crossed her arms.

"Charlie, pl-"

"Answer the question. Are you my father?"

"No" he exhaled.

"Okay. And did you get promoted while I was out? Huh? Are you my supervisor now, is that why I have to check in with you?"

"Would you jus-"

"_Are_ you?" she persisted.

"No." Mike answered through gritted teeth, his jaw tensed and the muscles in his face twitched, "But I am your boyfriend and I don't think I'm totally out of line by being concerned."

"You're not being concerned, you're being possessive."

"I'm being _protective._" he qualified but Charlie was still dissatisfied.

"Mike, since when do I need you to protect me?" she exclaimed, offended, "Believe it or not, I've been here a hell of a lot longer than you and I did just fine without you "protecting" me. Okay, I don't need you!" Mike recoiled, wounded by her words. Charlie closed her eyes, regretting how sharp they had been. She hadn't meant to be that cutting. "I didn't mean-" she went to reach for Mike's face but he pulled away.

"I cant believe you're throwing that bullshit in my face." he shook his head in disappointed surprise.

"It's not bullshit!"

"It's total bullshit!" Mike lowered his voice once her remembered his sleeping house-mates and continued, "Just because you got here before me I'm not allowed to care about you? That_ is_ bullshit"

"This isn't about me, Mike, this is about you being jealous that I wasn't thinking about you all day today. You're mad that while I was out without you, not thinking about you, you were sitting in here waiting. Well, I hate to have to be the one to remind you of this, Mike, but I have a job to do here. A job that I'm good at and that I actually enjoy. Now, I'm sorry, but sometimes that's going to get in the way of my "Mike time" but I cant help that."

"I know you have a job, Charlie, you don't have to talk to me like I'm an idiot. I have a job too, remember?"

"Right. And this is only going to work between us if we agree that the job comes first. It has to." Charlie's voice turned softer as she added the last part.

"Well I don't know how to do that, Charlie." Mike shrugged.

"Don't do that." Charlie's face screwed up in disgust, "Don't make out like you care about me more than I care about you."

"Well it's true."

"No, its not true! And I should smack you in the face for saying that."

"Oh, really? When was the last time you waited up for me, Charlie?"

"So now I'm being punished for believing in you?" Charlie shrugged, and then let her shoulders fall in exasperation. There was silence for a moment, the two incapable of seeing eye to eye. Charlie felt she was being punished for trusting in Mike the way he was clearly incapable of trusting her. Mike, on the other hand couldn't see how Charlie didn't worry constantly, the way he did. Charlie sighed and ran her hand through her hair before trying to explain herself yet again. However, she was finding it very hard to keep a level head when Mike was being so frustrating.

"Mike," his name was almost a statement, warning him that this was her final attempt, "Of course I worry about you. I love you. Do you really think I don't shit myself every time I hear you're out on a job? But, baby, this is never going to work if you cant differentiate between real worry and hypothetical worry. You're going to drive yourself crazy if you freak out like this every time my cellphone dies. And if we end up having this argument every night then..." she trailed off and desperately tried to search his face for some sign of agreement, "Then we both know this wont last."

Mike stared at the floor, taking in her words. He exhaled heavily through his nostrils, his jaw still clenched. Was that a threat? If he couldn't stop worrying about her they were finished? Was he paranoid? Was it really not okay for her boyfriend to worry about her? Mike blinked hard and tried his best to think clearly but the frustration, the anger and the exhaustion was severely affecting his ability to do so. Instead, Mike chose to act like a baby.

"Okay, fine Charlie. You're right, I'm the one who was wrong. From now on, you can stay out as long as you want and I wont care. No calls, no texts, you wont even cross my mind. I'll just learn how not to give a shit like you. I promise I will never act like I care about you ever again" he crossed his arms defiantly and almost spat the words, "Because I trust you." he added. As Charlie took in the sight of his sarcastic smile she didn't know whether to cry or punch him in the mouth. She felt tears brim and her fists clench. She couldn't believe he was acting like this. She'd always thought of him as innocent but never immature. Sweet Mike, _her _Mike would never be this spiteful, would he? Determined not to allow Mike to see her cry Charlie moved for the front door.

"Fine." she snapped and grabbed the jacket she had only just set down.

"Where are you going?" Mike whined.

"If you're going to act like a fucking child then so am I. I'll see you later." With that Charlie slammed the door. Mike went to call after her but remembered he couldn't let the others hear. He stood for a moment and tried to process what the hell had just happened. Had he really seen a tear roll down her cheek as she left? Mike shook his head, trying to banish the guilt from his mind. Instead, he replayed her words in his mind. "I don't need you" she had said. He made himself focus on how badly that had hurt. Mike rubbed at his eyes, conflicted and exhausted. He made for his bedroom, not because he thought he could sleep but only because he didn't feel like facing the others.

* * *

Mike huffed and rolled out of the bed, finally accepting he would not be able to sleep. He checked his phone: ten o'clock and no messages. He silently battled with himself for a minute before dialling her number. It rang off which meant she had her phone switched off or she couldn't hear it, and wasn't just ignoring his call. He waited for her answering machine.

"Hey, it's me. Call me back, okay?" Mike pursed his lips and thought about exactly what he would have said had she answered. He wanted to make sure she was okay and he also wanted to apologise and yet his anger wasn't totally gone. He felt guilty but only slightly, he still needed to know that Charlie understood his point. Feeling unbearably confused, he redialled.

"We really do need to talk, Charlie." was all he said but his voice was decidedly softer. Unable to sit still, Mike decided to go for a run, his usual remedy for pent up frustration.

As he ran Mike tried to focus his mind on something else. _Anything _else. He still had a few days worth of paperwork stacked on his desk after the Russian bust and the shootings but somehow that didn't hold his attention. He tried to distract himself by naming all the FBI directors chronologically but got through them far too quickly and found himself back at square one five minutes later. Instead he focused on picking up speed. He lifted his legs higher and lengthened his stride, kicking harder into the sand. Mike ran for another hour and a half, fully expecting to see Charlie sitting in the kitchen when he got home. As the safe-house came into view Mike began to sprint, desperate to see her. Mike was so excited to make up. He realised that he didn't care how angry he had been, he needed to see her, to hold her, to kiss her over and over and promise never to hurt her like that again.

"You are never going to make her cry again, Warren." he swore to himself but still said the words aloud as if made the vow stronger. He fished his phone out of his pocket and called her for the fifth time that morning.

"Hey, I'm almost home. I'm so sorry, baby. I was an asshole. That wasn't even me last night, I don't know what the hell happened. I was just scared, I guess. I love you so much and..." he closed his eyes and exhaled, "Well. I'll tell you when I get there. See you soon." With a smile he hung up and continued home. When he reached the house he hurried into the kitchen and felt his stomach drop when he wasn't perched on her usual stool. The kitchen was empty. Mike could smell coffee and could see a fresh stack of dishes teetering in the sink so he knew he hadn't missed them by much. He called out, shouting to everyone individually but no one answered. He did a quick check in all the rooms, finding no one. Mike stood in the empty house and tried to think of what to do next.

A couple of hours later Mike had settled himself at his desk but was struggling to make any head way with his documents, his eyes constantly drifting over to the phone sitting next to his coffee. Charlie had yet to reply to any of his messages, twelve in total now. Mike threw his pen down and dialled her number for the thirteenth time that day.

"Are you serious, Charlie? I've said I'm sorry a million times can you please just talk to me? I love you, call me." Mike scratched at his head and pursed his lips. Anger was beginning to mount inside him. Was she really that stubborn? Thirteen messages and not one reply. Mike tried to refocus on the paperwork to lessen his agitation. He could picture her out somewhere on a case with Briggs or Johnny, not even thinking about him, too focused on the job. Mike felt his mouth open slightly as he realised that he was slightly jealous that Charlie was able to compartmentalise so well. Mike was still lost in thought when a figure appeared in the doorway.

"Hey, Mike."

"Hi, Briggs." Mike said, he sounded more drained than he'd wanted to.

"You seen Charlie?" Briggs asked coolly. Mike looked up from the computer screen for the first time since Briggs had entered, fear trickling down his spine.

"No, I thought she was with you." he felt himself rise from his chair and move towards Briggs almost angry that he hadn't been protecting her like Mike had envisioned. He quickly pushed the unwarranted anger aside. He wanted to know how she was, needed to know she wasn't too upset. "How was she at breakfast? I mean did she seem preoccupied in any way?" Mike spoke slowly, carefully selecting his words and trying to sound as breezy as possible.

"She wasn't at breakfast." Briggs answered, slightly confused. Mike's eyes widened and he took a step closer now unable to suppress his anxiety.

"Wait, you mean she's been she didn't come home this morning?" Mike narrowed his eyes.

"Uh, no, I guess not." Briggs said, tentatively, taken aback by Mike's agitation.

"You didn't call her?" Mike was shouting now and Briggs was not in the habit of letting his trainees yell in his face. He crossed his arms and stood up straighter.

"Warren, are you telling me how to do my job?" he challenged. Mike sighed and took a step back, nervously scratching at the back of his neck.

"No, sir." he whispered, unable to achieve anything between that and shouting. Briggs, seeing Mike's submission softened his voice.

"Mike, I think it''s sweet that you're worried about your co-worker but Charlie's a big girl. You don't need to worry about her."

"Yeah, so I hear." Mike muttered as he rubbed at his eyes. Briggs gave him a reassuring pat on the shoulder.

"Johnny's not home, she's probably on a job with him," Briggs offered, attempting to calm Mike. Mike nodded only slightly relieved, "Or you know, she could have met someone." Briggs winked suggestively and had to hide a laugh when he saw Mike's face wrinkle in disgust. Mike quickly tried to look indifferent and inwardly scolded himself for feeling jealousy towards his hypothetical rival. Mike moved to sit back down to his work.

"Oh, and Mike?" Briggs said, halfway out of the room, "Did you forget you were on dishes today because they're really starting to pile up." He flashed Mike a sadistic grin before retreating to his room. Mike rolled his eyes and went to finish up his paperwork. She was just out with Johnny. Mike sighed but then knit his brow when a thought crossed his mind: she was out on another mission and yet again she hadn't called him. Mike stared in disbelief, shocked that she was torturing him like this. She knew he would be sitting at home, worrying. Mike couldn't believe she could be this spiteful. He began to question just how well he knew Charlie. He thought she didn't have a mean bone in her body. She could act tough and scary when she needed to but Mike knew she was a good, kind person who would never hurt him that way. Well, he _thought_ he knew. He grabbed his phone and stabbed at the numbers with his thumb, furious. He waited for it to ring off.

"I cant believe you." Mike growled through gritted teeth, "I get that you're mad, Charlie, but to run off on another job without even acknowledging my messages? Really? I had no idea you were like that, Charlie. I never thought you would go out of your way to hurt me like this." Mike quickly took the phone from his ear to check the time, "It's seven thirty. That's nearly fourteen hours you've been ignoring me. Fourteen hours of nothing. Are you enjoying this? Is this fun for you, making me miserable? You know what? Ignore the first hundred messages- don't call me back. I think I want to ignore you for a while." With that he hung up the phone. Mike swallowed against the lump in his throat and made his way towards the kitchen.

Mike was actually relieved to find he could distract himself with something else and went down to the kitchen, phone in hand. He tossed it on the counter behind him and got to work. Mike busied himself scrubbing and drying. Every so often he'd feel the need to remind himself "she's with Johnny" but deeply resented his worry. Despite his upset Mike felt himself smile in relief when the front door opened.

"Honey, I'm home!" Johnny called from the hall. He made his way into the kitchen and began to laugh carelessly at the sight of Mike in rubber gloves and an apron at the sink. "I missed you at work today, baby. What's for dinner?" Johnny joked and puckered his lips as if he expected a "welcome home" kiss. Mike laughed as he removed the apron and put away the last of the dishes.

"Is Charlie parking the car?"

"I wasn't with Charlie." Johnny replied, perplexed. Mike's face dropped.

"Then where were you?" Mike demanded, his voice raising in alarm.

"With my yoga instructor." Johnny winked and grinned with pride.

"Did she call you?" Mike persisted, ignoring Johnny's boasting.

"No, why?" but Johnny got no answer as Mike had already made his way up the stairs to Briggs' room. Johnny hurried to follow, calling Mike as he went, still bewildered. He reached the bedroom just after Mike.

"Charlie's not with Johnny." Mike declared an edge of terror creeping into his voice. Briggs looked up from the book he'd been reading and narrowed his eyes.

"Johnny, has she called you?"

"No." he replied

"You haven't spoken to her since yesterday?"

"No, not since dinner."

"What about Paige and Jakes?" Mike asked, almost pleading.

"No, Paige went home for the weekend and Jakes is just on his birds case, he wouldn't need Charlie for that." Briggs replied and Mike felt his fear mount.

"One of you call her." Mike demanded, growing frantic.

"But you said she hadn't answered you?" Johnny asked. Mike felt his eyes widen for only a second before covering.

"Well, I haven tried ringing her since this morning and you know she hates me in the morning so she probably ignored me..." he drifted off and shrugged. He tensed for a minute before they both reached for their phones. Briggs began to dial while Johnny checked his messages to no avail. Briggs shook his head and waited for the beep.

"Charlie, it's Briggs. You better get your ass home right now, you cant just go off on your own for twenty-four hours and not tell anyone. Call me. Now!" He shook his head in disappointment and pursed his lips.

"Man, that's so not Charlie," Johnny said, scratching his head in confusion, "What would make her take off like that?" Mike felt his cheeks redden. He knew he should tell them about the fight they'd had last night but couldn't bring himself to confess.

"I dunno, Johnny," Briggs sighed, "But I do know I am in desperate need of a shot of rum."

Mike and Johnny followed Briggs to the kitchen in silence. Briggs busied himself rummaging through the presses while Johnny rifled through the fridge. Both stopped however at the sound of Mike laughing. The screen on his phone was flashing "one new message" from the counter where he'd abandoned it earlier. She'd called. All his anger washed away because she had called and she was ready to talk. She was probably on her way home right now. Mike began to picture their reconciliation- tears ad kisses and apologies. He'd completely forgotten the last message he'd sent, too excited by the thought of holding her. _Soon. _He was finished waiting, Charlie was on her way home. Mike excitedly reached to listen to the message as Johnny and Briggs looked on in relief. They exchanged a grin at the sight of Mike so giddy. Johnny tried not to giggle as he mouthed "Mikey's got a crush" at Briggs.

Mike felt the smile freeze on his face for a split second before his mouth dropped. Fear trickled down his spine, sending a chill through every nerve ending. He felt his stomach fall so hard and so fast he half expected to see it on the floor. Briggs furrowed his brow and Johnny moved away from the fridge at the sight of Mike's jaw clenching as the muscles in his face twitched. His hand balled into a fist at his side and his knuckles whitened. His eyes grew dark and he could feel sick rise in his throat. Mike hung up and stared blankly, frozen with fear and there was total silence in the house as the others looked on in confusion.

"They've got Charlie." Mike whispered, his voice cracking.

Silence fell once again.

**A/N: Ooh, cliff hanger :P I just wanted to add that I know Mike is slightly OOC in this chapter but don't worry, it's all part of the plan ;) As I've said, I'm really displeased with this section but I'm so eager to continue the story so I hope you enjoyed it :/ Your comments have been so lovely and hugely encouraging so thank you so much for reviewing. But keep suggesting- tell me what you are liking and what's not so liked. And once again, thank you for reading. X **


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Hi everyone! I am so sorry I haven't updated in a while- unforgivable. But there was a lot of stuff in this chapter I was kind of conflicted over... I'll explain at the end, for now, just enjoy the chapter. This is what Charlie was doing during chapter three so the two end at the same time...if that makes sense. I of course, do not own "Graceland" and I don't profit from this story. Oh, and by the way, this is where it starts to get violent so be warned (if you think it should be rated M please let me know)**

**Enjoy!**

Chapter 4

Charlie let the door slam behind her as she stormed out, hot tears stinging at her eyes. She swallowed against the lump in her throat as she got in her car and began to drive. She had no idea where she was going but needed something else to concentrate on and so she just focused on the road. She tried to focus on the lights and the road signs and not the snide look on Mike's face or the cool, grey colour his eyes turned when he was mad. She blinked hard and began to count the street lamps, desperate to stop those words from spinning in her head.

" _I will never act like I care about you ever again" _What did that even mean? Was that _it_? were they finished? Had Mike decided that trying to sustain a relationship inside of Graceland really was too difficult? Was she wrong? Was Mike entitled to know where she was 24/7? Had she driven him away?

Charlie felt the sobs rise in her throat and so she pulled over. She could no longer suppress the frustration. As she finally allowed herself to cry she rested her head on the steering wheel and thumped at the dashboard. She had no idea how long she sat by the roadside, crying and replaying the fight. When she finally felt she'd cried herself dry the sun was up and the highway was filling with morning commuters. She adjusted the rear view mirror and groaned at the sight of her puffy eyes and red nose. Charlie put on her sunglasses and wiped at her face a final time before sniffling and pulling onto the motorway. When Charlie realised she was absent mindedly driving towards home she took a detour and drove to a coffee shop she and Mike had discovered. There was no way she was ready to go back to the house. She knew it was a bad idea, going to their place when she was feeling that way, but she didn't want to run the risk of bumping into any of her room-mates. There was also a small part of her that hoped that maybe Mike would be there, looking for her or just escaping like she was. She wasn't sure she was ready to see Mike, ready to know for certain that he was finished. But to see that face...

Charlie pulled up in the car park behind the coffee shop and and nodded to the familiar waitresses. She sat in the back table, reluctantly removed her shades and pulled a hand through her hair. She sat for a minute, her back to the door, too tired to think about anything other than how miserable she was. Suddenly, a hand came to rest on her shoulder and Charlie felt her eyes close in relief.

"Not with your _friend_ today?" the manager, Danny, asked teasingly as he set Charlie's usual order of black coffee down in front of her, "Not that I'm not pleased to see you, Charlie, but the girls are a little upset" he laughed and Charlie turned to see the two waitresses behind the counter visibly disappointed by Mike's absence.

"Them and me both" Charlie muttered darkly but she gave the manager a warm smile as she took the cup.

"So where is Mickey Blue Eyes?" Danny continued as he wiped the table across from Charlie, "You two have a little... disagreement?"

"It's complicated" Charlie sighed, sipping the coffee. The manager laughed a little, sympathetically.

"What relationship isn't?" he offered with a comforting look before smiling and leaving Charlie to her coffee. She sighed as she mulled that over. He was right, what relationship didn't have its complications? Who didn't have baggage? Here was a guy she was crazy about, that she _loved _and she was going to let him go because it was _complicated?_ She loved Mike- wasn't that all that mattered?Charlie felt like smacking herself in the face. "You asshole" she thought to herself as she went to fish her phone out of her pocket. When she remembered she'd left it in the car she hurried to the counter to pay for her coffee.

"Hey, Danny" she called as she frantically searched for cash "I gotta go." he steadied her hand with his and smiled warmly.

"Charlie," he soothed, "Don't worry about it. Go" he sighed a laugh "You two will be fine." Charlie felt her eyes water.

"Yeah?" she asked, an edge of fear in her voice. Danny laughed.

"Why do you think the girls are so jealous, huh? He loves you. The way he looks at you is.." he trailed off as if it were totally indescribable and Charlie laughed in relief.

"Thank you" she whispered and they both knew she wasn't talking about the coffee.

Charlie hurried towards her car, smiling, excited to go home to Mike and even more excited to make up. She sat into the car seat and checked the screen on her phone. She didn't have any messages, Mike must have been sleeping. She threw the phone onto the passenger seat and went to start the car. Charlie froze in fear for a split second when she felt a hand cover her mouth. It was only a second though before she brought an elbow back as hard and as fast as possible, connecting with something, whether it was ribs or chest. When her attacker flinched she took his hand in her mouth and bit down hard. When he tore it away she felt the metallic tang of blood in her mouth as she turned around in her seat and punched him square in the jaw. His face was covered and so far he hadn't said anything to betray an accent. She scrambled for the gun in the glove compartment but it had already been emptied. Panicked, she went to turn back to the figure in her back seat but as soon as she'd turned around she felt his forehead connect with the bridge of her nose and felt it break with a sickening wet crunch. She never got the chance to feel the pain of the breakage however as her head was spinning and her eyes were losing focus. The last thing she heard before she blacked out was her phone ringing.

* * *

The minute Charlie woke she felt pain. Pain was the trigger that made her remember where she was and how she'd gotten there. She blinked hard and tried to get the smell of blood out of her nostrils but trying to move her nose was a very bad idea. She tried to concentrate on each body part individually and not the overall burning and stinging that threatened to make her pass out again. Her arms were stretched up over her head and she could feel a zip tie cutting into her wrists. She moved from the ache in her joints and the sting in her wrists up to the throbbing in her knuckles. She smirked to herself as she knew she'd thrown a couple of punches for her hand to be so uncomfortable. She moved back down her arm to her face which was stinging and throbbing all over so she squinted against the hurt and concentrated on her body. She couldn't sense any broken ribs or dislocated joints and her legs seemed fine. She noticed she was holding herself up by the zip tie and shifted the weight to her legs. They began to ache but nothing was broken, probably just exhaustion. At least the sting in her wrists had lessened.

Charlie finally dared to open her eyes. One was swollen and didn't fully open. When she winced she felt her split lip open up again and her nose burned even more. She looked around, trying to gauge her location but if you'd seen one empty warehouse you'd seen them all. It was dark and there were no windows so she had no way of knowing how long she'd been there. She could barely see two feet in front of her, the only light that was on shone directly overhead. The sorry state of her knuckles told her that she had been awake since she's been taken and she'd obviously tried to escape.

Charlie looked up at her arms. The zip tie was just attached to some loose wiring coming from the roof "amateurs" Charlie thought as she braced herself. This would hurt. She inhaled and tugged as hard as she could at the wire, her knees buckling when she released herself. She hit the floor and tried to contain the cry of pain. "shit" she muttered she she noticed her wrists were still bound. The wire had snapped, not the zip tie. It needed to be tighter in order to snap. She quickly took the plastic between her teeth and tightened the zip tie as much as possible, closing her eyes in pain as she did so. When it was so tight she was cutting off circulation she took another deep breath, aimed for her hip bones and brought her wrists into her body with one hard movement- she did _not _want to have to do this twice. Luckily the trick she'd learned in her high school self defence class had worked and she was free albeit in immense pain, her wrists bloodied and torn.

Now that she was free she had to think about getting to safety. She had no idea where she was, although she hoped it was still California. She prayed her car was waiting outside although she knew it was more than likely still out behind the coffee shop. Suddenly she remembered Mike and she hoped he was out somewhere looking for her. She hoped, more than anything that he hadn't meant it when he said he wouldn't act like he cared ever again.

When she went to stand she knew she'd been drugged; her vision was a blurry mess and her coordination was non-existent. Determined to get away Charlie stumbled towards what she hoped was the door. She couldn't be sure but she was certain she could make out the light coming from under the door. "Just get outside, Charlie" she told herself, "Just get outside" She took another step and cried in pain when a fist connected with her already throbbing nose. She fell to the floor and tried not to panic as she heard the syrupy drip of blood hitting the concrete. She let a whimper of fear escape her lips when her head was yanked up by her hair and her face was smashed against the floor once more, this time she hit her forehead but she managed to contain her cry of pain.

"Finally some variety" she choked through the blood, determined to seem unafraid, whoever they were. Charlie was pulled up by her arms and despite her exhaustion she struggled against the tank of a man holding her. She summoned the energy to quickly slip her arm out of his baseball mitt of a hand and shoved the heel of her palm into the guard's nose. When he tilted his head back to staunch the blood flow Charlie shot a punch at his exposed neck winding him. She smirked in satisfaction at the sight of sending a man three times her size to his knees.

"What the fuck is this?" a voice came from the door she'd been making her way towards. The warehouse flooded with light as two more giants of men came to restrain her while the one who'd called out made his way over surrounded by more henchmen.

"That bitch broke my nose" the first man chocked from the floor.

"Yeah, now we match" Charlie retorted from between the two new guards. Both of her arms were in their vice like grip and her back was arched against the gun jammed in her lower back. The man who'd called from the door made his way over to Charlie. He was wearing an obnoxiously expensive suit and was leisurely sucking on a cigar. Charlie rolled her eyes at just how cliché he was. He was slight and not very tall but Charlie knew that did not make him weak. She assumed he relied on speed, like her. She was sure she knew his face: gaunt with generic grey eyes and facial hair. Despite his smaller stature Charlie felt uneasy around him. His movements were fluid but measured, is if he was always restraining himself.

"You broke his nose?" he asked her as he walked. It was now Charlie registered the thick Russian accents that surrounded her. Russian? She wasn't under with any Russians. She frantically scanned her case files mentally, desperate to figure out why she was here. Nothing seemed to make sense and that worried her. No way was this coincidence- they wanted something from her. "That is now three broken noses, five cracked ribs, one dislocated shoulder three dislocated jaws and one severe testicular bruising that you have caused my men in the short time you have been here...Charlie." He added her name teasingly, relishing in the fear that lit in her eyes when he said it. "So you _are _Charlie" he laughed "Good. I would hate to think we had the wrong girl."

"Wrong girl for what?" Charlie spat, determined to hide the fear in her voice. His hand tore across her cheek, opening one of her cuts. Her head snapped to the side but she made no sound.

"You do not ask the questions" he said with en eerie calm, his voice quite high but in no way feminine. After lashing out like that and went back to his cigar all too calmly. "Well Charlie," he continued, "where did you learn to fight so well? I'm impressed" he added with a smile and Charlie wrinkled her nose in disgust when his eyes lazily moved down her bruised frame. When he tore his gaze back up to meet hers he was still sneering and Charlie began to struggle a little more when he took a step closer. "Tell me, Charlie, did Mike teach you how to do that?"

The mention of Mike's name had had the desired effect as Charlie's eyes widened in panic.

"What'd you do to him?" she managed through gritted teeth, furious now. She grew angrier when the cigar man only laughed. He took the cigar from his mouth and sighed.

"What did I say about the questions, Charlie?" he asked still unsettlingly calm. He sighed once more as the arms restraining Charlie tightened and he brought the top of his cigar down on her forearm. Charlie gasped and felt her knees buckle with pain. She tried to stay conscious, for Mike's sake and so she blinked hard and tried not to remember that she even had a right arm. The warehouse was filled with the sound of her cries and the Russians' sadistic laughter. "You see?" he taunted, "Its not what we've done to Mike but what we're _going _to do to you." Charlie barely even registered the threat. All of a sudden she was forced into a chair and someone was wrapping a tourniquet around her arm. She panicked at the thought of being drugged again and began to struggle but she was quickly overpowered and they managed to inject her despite her best efforts to escape. When Charlie blacked out she was still praying that _he_ was safe...

* * *

Charlie woke to someone slapping at her face, enraging the cuts and bruises on her cheeks. Charlie was in so much pain she didn't even know if she could move without feeling the blistering heat rise inside her once again. So long as she kept still it would remain only a weak blaze. But someone was determined to wake her and somewhere in the back of her mind she registered the calls for her to wake. She opened her eyes only slightly, the drugs still dampening her senses. She was standing again, her wrists were on fire so she knew she was tied but this time it was something stronger, she didn't care what. The only thing Charlie had the strength to care about was Mike. She still didn't know where he was, where he thought _she _was, was he safe. She hadn't noticed she'd been saying his name out loud.

"Mike has been wondering about you too" Charlie made out the cool voice of the cigar man but her vision was too burred to make out faces. "He's been very eager to know where you are. He's called...how many times has it been, Victor?" he called to one of the other blurry frames.

"Fourteen, boss"

"Fourteen." he repeated and she saw him reach out for something. A gun? Another cigar? She couldn't make it out, she was already slipping back into the dark but someone would shake her awake or slap her across the face when she began to lose consciousness. Suddenly Charlie made out a new voice: a woman.

"You have fourteen new messages" he'd reached for her phone and had her voice mail on loudspeaker. "Message one" the automated voice continued.

"Hey, it's me. Call me back, okay?" _Mike_.

Charlie heard his voice and instantly felt safe. Because _he _was safe. And wherever he was he was thinking about her. Whoever it was had taken her, they were screwed so long as Mike was looking for her. "We really do need to talk, Charlie." came his sigh a minute later and Charlie closed her eyes, focusing on that voice and the way he said her name.

"I would say fourteen messages was a little excessive...if it weren't for the present circumstances" the cigar man sneered and Charlie felt anger begin to build inside her. _No one _mocked Mike in front of Charlie and this was no exception.

"Stop it" Charlie warned, growling and fixing him with a murderous glare despite her lack of focus.

"No, no, it gets better" he taunted and raised a finger to his lips as the messages continued. Mike continued to call out to her, his questions echoing around the warehouse, going unanswered.

"Stop it!" Charlie persisted "Just give up!" she pulled at her bonds in frustration, her hair falling in her face. When she continued to shout someone plastered duct tape over her lips.

"But I thought you were having some sort of argument" her captor called in mock confusion, "when we saw you show up at that shit hole café alone, obviously we were pleased but nevertheless, we were puzzled. And when we saw you crying..." he trailed off, enjoying the look of confusion, fury and fear that crossed Charlie's face. Did they know about Graceland? Did they know she was an FBI agent? Did they even know Mike was an FBI agent? Charlie sill couldn't understand why she was there. "But you've never gone there alone before, we always see you together." he'd continued while Charlie was thinking, "and you are both so careful when you leave, we can never keep up!" Charlie felt a small wave of relief. The house was safe, god bless the heat run. "Afraid your husband might catch you? Or Mike's wife? Am I close? There must be some reason why we only ever see you two at all hours of the morning?" he continued to guess as to why the need for secrecy but Charlie just glared, determined to give him nothing. He laughed a little "You wont tell me, will you?" he shrugged "No matter. If you wont Mike will" Charlie felt sick at the thought of Mike getting involved and she began to protest against her gag. The cigar man's face twisted in delight "Do not worry, Charlie. You are not to blame. Mike and his treachery has put him in this position, not you. You see-" he went to continue but heard the voice mail continue "Oh, wait, I like this one" he smiled and pointed at the phone

" I'm almost home. I'm so sorry, baby. I was an asshole. That wasn't even me last night, I don't know what the hell happened. I was just scared, I guess. I love you so much and... well, I'll tell you when I get there. See you soon." Charlie felt herself sigh in relief. He loved her. He still loved her. He didn't want them to break up. She knew she should be focusing on her current situation but it didn't matter. Mike loved her.

The messages continued and Charlie felt guilt rise inside her as Mike's voice grew frantic. "where are you, I'm worried...call me, please...I love you" he continued to plead into the empty space and Charlie had to fight not to call out to the message, just so he wouldn't be ignored any more. "Mike, I'm so sorry" she thought to herself, her mind still a mess.

"Message fourteen" the voice came as everyone excluding Charlie began to grow tired of Mike's voice.

"I cant believe you." Charlie had never heard Mike sound so angry "I get that you're mad, Charlie, but to run off on another job without even acknowledging my messages? Really? I had no idea you were like that, Charlie. I never thought you would go out of your way to hurt me like this." Charlie felt the tears fall and dint have the fight left to try and hide them. She'd been so stupid. If she hadn't stormed out like a spoiled baby none of this would have happened. "It's seven thirty. That's nearly fourteen hours you've been ignoring me. Fourteen hours of nothing. Are you enjoying this?" No I'm not she thought. Fourteen hours she had let him worry, for fourteen hours he had thought she didn't care. She felt hopelessness settle in her chest. How could he want her back now? What kind of bitch would ignore someone so sweet and in such obvious pain for fourteen hours, "Is this fun for you, making me miserable? You know what? Ignore the first hundred messages- don't call me back. I think I want to ignore you for a while."

By the time the message ended Charlie's face was tear stained and her nose was reddening. She prayed that Mike knew she loved him, that soon he would realise she wasn't just ignoring him, that she needed him. That she loved him. The salt in her tears was irritating her cut cheeks and her wrists were still furiously burning, as was the mess of a burn on her arm but none of that hurt more than knowing that Mike thought she'd hurt him and the fact that she'd failed him.

"Maybe we should put him out of his misery?" the Russian with the cigar asked lightly, "Return his calls?" Charlie watched suspiciously as he dialled Mike's number. He put the phone to his ear and lit another cigar while he waited. "No answer" he said in exaggerated surprise, "We'll just leave our own voice mail" he said as he moved towards Charlie. He put the phone to her face and, with the other hand, raised the cigar to the back of her arm, blinding Charlie in pain once more. She tried her best not to scream, to focus on something else, _anything _else. On Mike. She tried to think about Mike's eyes and Mikes hair. She pictures his smile, his kisses, his arms, the way he looked at her, the way he'd nip at her neck. She tried to focus on these things and not words like "burning", "agony" and "scorched" When he took the cigar away, however and moved it to the blister that was forming on her first burn Charlie finally gasped and when he pushed and twisted it into her wound she cried out against the tape. While he continued to twist someone ripped the tape away and Charlie cried into the receiver, despite her best efforts. She closed her eyes and tried to ignore the ash falling in front of her.

Charlie realised she had a chance to tell Mike the truth, to explain, to urge him to keep safe.

"Mike" she choked through the pain but before she could manage anything else the phone was gone. The Russian was speaking into the receiver but Charlie couldn't keep herself awake any longer. The pain was so intense that when everything began to go dark she was thankful. As she drifted back into the nothing, she was still picturing those blue eyes, that smile, those arms, that hair..._him._

**A/N: So, first, I so hope you enjoyed this chapter. As I said, I was really unhappy with it so I apologise for not updating in a long time. Some of you were actually sweet enough to message me about it which was amazing but made me feel like such a meanie so I am so sorry and...I so hope it was worth the wait. **

**See, this is where my original idea starts- when the relationship ends up getting someone hurt. So I needed Charlie to get _caught _(see? Christ, I'm lame...) But my favourite thing about the show is how strong the female characters are and the last thing I want is for Charlie to be some damsel in distress character. I wanted it her to be defeated but only because she kicked serious ass for twelve hours...but then it seemed too violent. And, while I'm fine with violence I don't want to make anyone uncomfortable. But then I figured if you're watching a show where people get hands cut off and have eyes melted with lead I'm hoping you're alright with violence. So I just went for it because Charlie being a bad-ass is why she's my favourite character.**

**Your support and comments have been so encouraging, you have no idea how great it is to see a new comment or favourite or something so thank you. And I promise the next chapters will be up a lot sooner. **

**Again, thank you for reading. X **


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